Copy-holder.



R. A. PUNNETT.

COPY HOLDER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. I0, 1913.

1,26@,622 Patented May 21,1918.

rarest? @FMGE REUBEN A. PUNNETT, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BYMESNE ASSIGNMENTS,

T LINEATIME MANUFACTURING COMPANY, INC., OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK.

corY- onnnn.

Specification ofI-etters Patent.

patented May 21, acre.

Application filed February 10, 1913. Serial No. 747,262. 7

To aZZ whom it may concern."

Be it known that T, REUBEN A. PUNNETT, of Rochester, in the county ofMonroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Copy- Holders; and I do hereby declare the following tobe a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, andto the reference numerals marked thereon.

My present invention relates to copyholders and more particularly tocopyholders of the typein which a vertically disposed and verticallytraveling copy-plate is actuated upwardly past a stationary lineindicator and then caused to descend by virtue of its own weight, andithas for its object to pro- 0 vide a simple and eflicient means forcontrolling the descent of the copy-plate and cushioning its fall toprevent jar and vibration. A machine of the general type mentioned isillustrated in the patent to Russell B. Grifith, No. 1,014,646, grantedJanuary 16, 1912, and for most purposes the present invention may beconsidered as an im rovement thereon. Further objects of the mventionare to render the retarding and cushion ing means adjustable tocompensate for wear and other changed conditions after a period of useand to prevent the rebound of the copy-plate following its descent. Tothese and other ends the invention consists in certain improvements andcombinations of 85 parts all as will be hereinafter more fullydescribed, the novel features being pointed out in the claims at the endof the specification.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a rear elevation of a copyholder constructed in accordancewith and illustrating one embodiment of my invention; a

Fig. 2 is a detail fragmentary and enlarged sectional view takensubstantially on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken substantially on the line 33 ofFig. 2, and

Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of the v spring friction plate.

Similar reference numerals throughout the several figures indicate thesame parts.

The precise machine illustrated is one desi ned particularly for use inconnection wlth a typewriter and to this end comprises an upright backframe 1 and a side frame 2 that extends forwardly and may be disposedalong the'side of the typewriting machine in such manner that aforwardly and rearwardly extending operating lever 3 substan- 6O tiallycoincident therewith and having a finger portion 4 at the front'will beaccessible adjacent to the keyboard of the typewriter. The copy-plate 5that is preferably of substantially the shape shown has suitable clips 6at the top thereof for holding the pages of the copy and is guided toreciprocate vertically on the frame 1 by a centrally disposed guide rod7 held offset from the rear face of the plate in brackets 8 and passingthrough a boss 9 that provides an extended bearing in the top rail 10 ofthe frame.

Supplementary guide rods lland 12 are also preferably provided but soarranged as to bear reversed relationship to the rela- 7 5 tivelymovable parts from that of the guide 7 In other words, they are carriedfixedcon the frame 1 and pass through bracket bearings 13 and 14 securedto the bottom of the copy-plate, which brackets travel thereon. so

The mechanism for elevating the copy- 'plate on its guide during whichoperation the writing on the page carried thereby is brought, a line ata time, above a suitable line indicator '15 suitably mounted on theframe 1 and having a portion spanning the front face of the plate,comprises, in the present instance, the operating lever 3, beforedescribed that is pivoted at 16 on a standard 17 rising from the sidebar 2. The rear end of this'lever is connected at 18 to a vback lever 19disposed transversely of the frame 1 and pivoted thereto at' 20 at itsopposite end. At an intermediate point, this back lever 19 has pivotedto it, as at 21, a vertically disposed clutch rod 22, the upper end ofwhich is guided at 23 in the top rail 10 of the main frame. Tts'projecting end 'above the rail carries a lifting clutch 24 comprising aplate through which the rod extends and that may oscillate thereonbetween pins 25 and 26. The guiding and lifting rod 7 on the copy-plateis passed through a suitable aperture in this clutch so that as theclutch rod 22 is elevated, the clutch will bind on the rod and raise thelatter, but when the clutch rod is lowered Will not be permitted toassume a sufiicient acute angular relationship to cause a bindingaction.

Thus, when the copy-plate has been elevated the distance of a line andit is required that the lifting clutch 24 be lowered with referencethereto to grasp the lifting rod 7 at a lower point, the copyrplate issupported against return movement by a similar clutch 27 that engagesthe lifting rod in the same manner under the influence of a spring 28encircling the latter. The clutch 27 is fulcrumed on anextension of theframe at 29 so that as the clutch rod clutch rod 22 drawn with it. Uponsuch actuation of the parts, the lifting clutch 24 is released by anengagement with the rail 10 of the main frame that causes it to bestraightened out horizontally so that it can- /not bind upon the liftingrod. The retaining clutch 27 is released and caused to as-' sume asimilar position by the engagement of an abutment 30 therewith whichcompresses the spring 28. As the lifting rod is then unsupported byeither clutch, it descends on its guide by gravity of the loweredposition. e

In the practice of my present invention, I provide a friction devicefor'retarding the descent of the copy-plate that embodies a spring plate31 which, in the present instance, is carried by the frame 1 and actsagainst the lifting rod and the guide 7. It is slightly bowed, asclearly shown in Fig. 2, and disposed against a fiat face 32 on the boss9 at one end against which flat surface it is held 'bya set screw 33.The lower end is turned inwardly and provided with a notch 34 thatstraddles the rod 7 and exerts resilient pressure thereon, the degree ofwhich pressure may be varied by adjusting the set screw 33, for underthe influence of the latter the curved plate may be flattened to agreater or less extent.

In addition to the friction brake 31, I provide at the base of eachsupplemental guide rod 11 and 12 encircling coil springs 35 and 36.

Of course, the downward travel of the copy-plate with any given load,can be so nicely adjusted by means of the brake 31 that a buffer at thebottom is hardly required, but inasmuch as the load, in the way ofmanuscript that is carried thereon, varies and it is necessary that thecopy-plate also descend when released without any load, the tension ofthe plate 31 is adjusted to give a slow but uniform descending movementwithout load on the plate and the springs 35 and 36 working inconjunction therewith toward the end of the movement provide againstshock due to the increased momentum of the copy-plate when its ownweight is added to.

It is important here to notice that the combined use of the buffersprings 35 and 36 on the one hand, and the friction brake 31 on theother, leads to an important result. Were the springs used alone, it isevident that the copy-plate would rebound after engagement therewithupon reaching the limit of downward movement and not again assume itsextreme lowered position because its weight alone, unassisted bymomentum, would be insufficient to again compress the springs, and theoperating mechanism might be released to reengage the clutches just atthis point. The friction device 31, however, is sufiicient to preventany considerable rebound of this character and to hold the springsslightly compressed with a consequent relatively lower position ofthecopy-plate.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a copyholder, the combination with a support, a verticallydisposed copy-plate and a guide fixed to one of said parts and slidablyengaging the other, of means for elevating the copy-plate with a step bystep movement, means for releasing said first mentioned means to permitthe copyholder to descend, and a friction brake mounted on the other ofsaid first mentioned parts and acting against the guide to check thedescent of the copy-plate comprising a bowed springiplate disposedagainst a relatively flat-surface and a securing and adjusting screwextending through the plate.

2. In a copyholder, the combination with a supporting frame having ahorizontal top rail and a pair of vertical y disposed guide rods, avertically movable copyplate guided on the rods and a guide rod carriedby the copyplate and guided in the top rail of the frame between theguide rods on the latter, of means for elevating the copyplate, meansfor releasing the latter to permit of its descent, and a friction brakemounted onthe crosspiece and acting against the central guide rod on thecopyplate, said brake comprising a spring plate secured to the crosspiece by a screw that also operates to regulate the tension of thebrake.

\ REUBEN A. PUNNETT. Witnesses:

HENRY W. -HALL, RUSSELL B. GRIFFITH.

